B’nai B’rith International President Gary P. Saltzman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:
 
B’nai B’rith International condemns the City Council in Durham, North Carolina for passing a resolution which blatantly promotes the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement by no longer allowing its police department to engage in “military-style training” overseas. 
 
According to JTA, the legislation was backed by anti-Israel group Jewish Voice for Peace, which petitioned to “immediately halt any partnerships that the Durham Police Department has or might enter into with the Israeli Defense Forces and/or the Israel Police.”
 
The Durham City Council has things backward. Israel’s democratic values are demonstrated every day by its police force. As a country under constant threat from terrorists and those who wish to destroy it, Israel’s record on human and civil rights is exemplary. Shame on those in Durham who have been intimidated by those whose only objective is to delegitimize the Jewish state.

B’nai B’rith Established First Lodge in Pre-State Israel in 1888

B’nai B’rith salutes Israel on its 70th birthday.
 
With global recognition of Israel’s relentless innovations in medicine, technology and science, many of the things we take for granted in today’s modern world were invented in Israel.
 
Israel truly made the desert bloom. With scant natural resources, Israelis successfully built, maintain and thrive on somewhat inhospitable land. A global leader in water desalinization, Israeli scientists have made the most of their natural setting and are helping other nations meet water challenges. Other breakthroughs include the Pillcam, which allows doctors to see inside patients, Waze, which finds drivers the best routes, USB flash drives, smart-drip irrigation to control the flow of precious water to crops, Mobileye, which more than 25 global automakers use to make cars safer by using tiny cameras and data to warn drivers of hazards like pedestrians in their way, or the ReWalk exoskeleton, that can help quadriplegics walk again. Israel also sets a global example of selflessness, often being the first of first responders to send rescue teams to such global catastrophes as the devastating earthquake in Haiti.
 
Since 1980, the B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem has been a vital link between Israel and B’nai B’rith members, donors and supporters around the world. Through innovative programming, the World Center-Jerusalem, with its strong ties throughout Israel’s government and business worlds, strengthens Israel-Diaspora relations.
 
Israel is a thriving democracy and innovator, all while having to constantly focus on existential threats and self-defense.
 
We salute Israel, for its innovation, its leadership and for providing a continuous home for Jews around the world.

​B’nai B’rith International President Gary P. Saltzman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:
 
B’nai B’rith International commends the German government for appointing Felix Klein commissioner for combating anti-Semitism, a newly created position.
 
Klein, who currently serves as special representative for relations with the Jewish community, will be charged with coordinating the government's activities to fight anti-Semitism within Germany. He also has headed Germany's delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) and played a leading role in prompting his government's adoption of IHRA's working definition of anti-Semitism.
 
It is vitally important that the German government place its prestige and resources behind the pressing issue of anti-Semitism, as it is doing with the creation of the anti-Semitism commissioner post. In 2017 Germany experienced 1,453 anti-Semitic hate crimes, according to government data, as well as a continued mainstreaming of anti-Semitic attitudes, which Klein has vowed to oppose.
 
B'nai B'rith encourages other governments to create similar positions and to work with stakeholders in civil society to vigorously fight anti-Semitism.

Jewish Rescuer Fanny Ben-Ami: “Build your Lives and Families Here and Only Here in Israel”

Today, on Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Day, the B’nai B’rith World Center and Keren Kayemet Le’Israel-Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF) held for the 16th consecutive year a unique joint Holocaust commemoration ceremony. This is the only event dedicated annually to commemorating the heroism of Jews who rescued fellow Jews during the Holocaust. The ceremony took place at the Martyrs’ Forest – Scroll of Fire Monument with some 1,000 people in attendance including IDF Border Police cadets who provided an honor guard, high school students from Jerusalem and the surrounding area, pre-army preparatory academy students, survivors and rescuers. The ceremony was dedicated to recognizing the heroism of the members of the Jewish French Resistance in saving fellow Jews during the Nazi occupation of France.
 
Among those taking part in the ceremony were Jewish rescuer Fanny Ben-Ami, whose autobiography was adapted into the movie “Fanny’s Journey” (2017); Head of Mission of the French Embassy in Israel Frederik Rogge;  Tsilla Hershco, author of the book “Those Who Walk in Darkness will See Light: The Jewish French Resistance during the Holocaust and the Creation of Israel, 1940-1949;” KKL-JNF Director of Human Resources Division Eli Achi Mordechai; Director of the B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem Alan Schneider and Chairman Haim Katz. During the ceremony, a Jewish Rescuer’s Citation was conferred by the B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem and the Committee to Recognize the Heroism of Jews who Rescued Fellow Jews During the Holocaust (JRJ) to Ben-Ami and in honor of other rescuers who risked their lives to save fellow Jews.
 
Ben-Ami moved the audience when she said she is sharing her citation with the group of children she led during their escape from France to Switzerland. She also told the audience to “Travel the world and take in new cultures, and learn, but build your lives and families here and only here in Israel. Because when things will go bad in the Diaspora you’ll be thrown out. Israel will always be the only safe place for you.”
 
Moshe Yogev, member of the KKL-JNF Board of Directors, said: “Fanny Ben-Ami, who sits here today, reluctantly became a hero while she was still a child when she bravely led her friends, through unimaginable dangers, from occupied France to the safe haven of Switzerland. Like previous years, today we honor many Jewish rescuers like her, members of the French Jewish resistance and rescuers from additional countries who, instead of looking out for only themselves and their families, chose to risk their lives to save their brethren from the inferno. These life-saving acts are a source of pride and inspiration for us all, and especially to the younger generation: this is the ideal example of human and Jewish solidarity and, following the important value of ‘All of Israel are responsible for one another’..”
 
Head of Mission of the French Embassy in Israel Frederik Rogge, spoke on behalf of the French ambassador: “It is an honor for me to be here today on the occasion of Yom Hashoah Holocaust Remembrance Day. We are here to recall the utmost tragedy that led to the suffering and murder of six million Jews in Europe — men, women and children. In France, as in many other countries in Europe, the Nazis were responsible for this tragedy. But they had accomplices — the French authorities — the Vichy government helped them in the deportation of around 76,000 Jews, nearly a quarter of the Jewish population of France at that time. This responsibility of our own government was recognized by former President Jacques Chirac.”
 
Rogge also added: “We are also here to recall the heroism of those who rose against barbarism and inhumanity. Those who saved Jews from the Holocaust — sometimes at the cost of their own life. Many of them were also Jews. In France, where the Jewish population at the start of the war accounted for less than one percent  of the total population, we estimate that 10 percent  to 20 percent  of the members of the Resistance were Jews. We should particularly commend the actions of Jewish Resistance groups such as the Jewish Scouts (EIF), the Jewish Army (AJ), the Organization of Assistance for Children (OSE) and  the Movement of the Zionist Youth (MJS). They rescued thousands of adults and children by providing them with hiding places or forged papers, and organized convoys to Switzerland and Spain. They also formed guerrilla organizations in the main cities of France and in the mountains. The Jewish Resistance groups often were the driving force behind the activities of the French Righteous Gentiles. They helped together to protect and rescue three-quarter of the French Jewish population who eventually survived the Holocaust. Let’s praise their courage and honor their memory.”
 
B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem Chairman Haim Katz, said that, “To date, the Jewish Rescuer Citation has been awarded to about 200 rescuers who acted in France, Hungary, Greece, Germany, Slovakia, Yugoslavia, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Italy and Holland, Austria, Belarus, Lithuania — in order to recognize the heroism of the Jewish rescuers during the Holocaust.
 
This year, the ceremony was dedicated to the rescue efforts of the Jewish Resistance in France that operated from the occupation of France in June 1940 until the defeat of German forces there in September 1944. Each of the networks was established as an independent entity, but collaborated in various activities and often shared members. These networks saved the lives of thousands of adults and children, employing various methods such as issuing false documentations, smuggling Jews to Switzerland and Spain and formulating guerrilla groups in the cities and partisans groups in the south of France. These networks united under one umbrella organization — Organisation Juive de Combat-OJC.
 
After the war many of the members of the Jewish resistance in France contributed to the creation of the State of Israel. They joined the Haganah, helped develop a foundation for Israeli diplomatic activities in France, facilitated the illegal immigration to Israel, purchased weapons for what would become the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), engaged in clandestine radio transmission between Europe and pre-state Israel, created connections with the French government and arranged for military recruitment and training for the IDF in France. Many members made aliyah and participated in the War of Independence.
 
The Martyr’s Forest is the largest joint B’nai B’rith and KKL-JNF project, which memorializes the victims of the Holocaust with six million trees planted in the picturesque Jerusalem mountains near Moshav Kesalon. At the pinnacle of the forest stands the “Scroll of Fire,” created by renowned sculptor Nathan Rapoport, which invokes the destruction of the Jewish people in the Holocaust and their redemption in the State of Israel. The event began with personal testimonies by Holocaust survivors to classes of soldiers and students.

B’nai B’rith International President Gary P. Saltzman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:
 
B'nai B'rith International expresses deep concern regarding the visit of Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to Latin America this week.
 
Zarif was received by Brazilian President Michel Temer, Uruguayan President Tabaré Vázquez and foreign ministries under the guise of being a “business delegation.” This visit afforded the government of Iran a high profile platform and cover to condemn Israel abroad.
 
Yesterday in Brazil, Zarif issued a statement against Israel and its operations in Syria, clearly going beyond the scope of a “business” visit.
 
We question why Temer and Vázquez are hosting the foreign minister of a country which is a real-time, well-documented serial abuser of human rights, denier of the Holocaust and a major supporter of terror around the world. 

Ceremony Dedicated To Rescue Efforts of the Jewish Resistance in France

The B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem and Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael (KKL-JNF) will hold for the 16th consecutive year, a unique joint Holocaust commemoration ceremony on Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Day (Yom Hashoah, Thursday, April 12). This is the only event dedicated annually to commemorating the heroism of Jews who rescued fellow Jews during the Holocaust. The Border Patrol training base will provide an honor guard, and Jerusalem-area schools and pre-army preparatory academies will attend the ceremony together with Jewish rescuers and survivors. The ceremony will take place at the B’nai B’rith Martyr’s Forest “Scroll of Fire” Plaza at 10:00 a.m. Israel time.

Participants in the ceremony will be: Fanny Ben-Ami, heroine of the book "The Little Commander"(1986) and the movie "Fanny's Story" (2017); Ambassador Helen Le Gal, ambassador of France to Israel; Tsilla Hershco, author of "Those Who Walk in Darkness Will See Light: The Jewish French Resistance During the Holocaust and the Creation of Israel 1940-1949" and Haim V. Katz, chairman of the B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem. A representative from KKL-JNF will also speak at the ceremony.

This year, the ceremony will be dedicated to the rescue efforts of the Jewish Resistance in France that operated from the occupation of France in June 1940 until the defeat of German forces there in September 1944. Each of the networks was established as an independent entity, but collaborated in various activities and often shared members. These networks saved the lives of thousands of adults and children, employing various methods such as issuing false documentations, smuggling Jews to Switzerland and Spain and formulating guerrilla groups in the cities and partisans groups in the south of France. These networks united under one umbrella organization — Organisation Juive de Combat-OJC.

Hundreds of members of the organization participated in battles to free France after the Normandy invasion and were decorated after the war by the French authorities as members of an organization who fought the Nazis. About 76,000 Jews — a quarter of French Jewry at the time — were murdered during the Holocaust, their names are memorialized on the "Wall of Deceased" at the Mémorial de la Shoah, which is located in Paris. This Jewish resistance networks had a significant part in the rescue of the remaining three-quarters but paid a high price — about 200 members were killed during those activities. The Organisation Juive de Combat-OJC included the following Jewish resistance movements: Armée Juive (A.J.), Jewish Scouts, the Zionist youth movement, OSE-Garel, the Rabbis of the Camps, Amelot Street Committee, Andre group, Moussa Abadi group and the Dutch group.

After the war many of the members of the Jewish resistance in France contributed to the creation of the State of Israel. They joined the Haganah, helped develop a foundation for Israeli diplomatic activities in France, facilitated the illegal immigration to Israel, purchased weapons for what would become the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), engaged in clandestine radio transmission between Europe and pre-state Israel, created connections with the French government and arranged for military recruitment and training for the IDF in France. Many members made aliyah and participated in the War of Independence.

During the ceremony, a Jewish Rescuers Citation will be conferred on Fanny Ben-Ami by the Committee to Recognize the Heroism of Jewish Rescuers During the Holocaust (JRJ) and the B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem and posthumously on some 20 other rescuers who were active in France, Holland, Italy, Belarus and Poland. Since the establishment of the Jewish Rescuers Citation in 2011, nearly 200 heroes have been honored for rescue activities in Germany, France, Hungary, Greece, Slovakia, Yugoslavia, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Italy and Holland.

The Martyr’s Forest is the largest joint B’nai B’rith and KKL-JNF project, which memorializes the victims of the Holocaust with six million trees planted in the picturesque Jerusalem mountains near Moshav Kesalon. At the pinnacle of the forest stands the “Scroll of Fire,” created by renowned sculptor Nathan Rapoport, which invokes the destruction of the Jewish people in the Holocaust and their redemption in the State of Israel. The event will commence with personal testimonies by Holocaust survivors to classes of soldiers and students.

The phenomena of Jewish rescue and the instructive stories of thousands of Jews who labored to save their endangered brethren throughout Europe is a vital, yet under-recognized story. Many who had the opportunity to flee chose to stay and rescue others; some paid for it with their lives. With great heroism, Jews in every country in occupied Europe employed subterfuge, forgery, smuggling, concealment and other methods to ensure that Jews survived the Holocaust, or assisted them in escaping to a safe heaven, and in doing so foiled the Nazi goal of total genocide against the Jews. The organizers of the ceremony view it as especially important to expose Jewish youth to these narratives as a model for Jewish solidarity and courage.

Program
 
9:00-9:30 a.m.          Personal testimonies by Holocaust survivors to soldiers in the Forest
9:45 a.m.                  Coalesce in “Scroll of Fire” Plaza
10:00 a.m.                Siren peal and ceremony commencement
11:00 a.m.                Ceremony conclusion
11:00-11:30 a.m.      Personal testimonies by Holocaust survivors to students in the Forest
 
For interviews with Tsilla Hershco, author of "Those Who Walk in Darkness Will See Light: The Jewish French Resistance During the Holocaust and the Creation of Israel 1940-1949" please contact Herscho directly at 052-6222394
For all other interviews please contact B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem Director Alan Schneider at 052-5536441 or aschneider@bnaibrith.org

​The B'nai B'rith World Center-Jerusalem and the Committee to Recognize the Heroism of Jews who Rescued Fellow Jews During the Holocaust (JRJ) will induct more than 30 Jewish rescuers into the ranks of their joint Jewish Rescuers Citation.
 
The current list includes members of the French Jewish Resistance: Henri Pohoryles, Leo Cohn, Ernest Lambert, Abraham Polonsky, David Knout, March Levi, Robert Gamzon, Emmanuel Racine, Regine Ariane Knout, Fanny Ben-Ami, Mila Racine, Anne-Marie Lambert-Finkler, Betty Knout Lazaros and Marianne Cohn.
 
Additional rescuers include: Eduard Laufer from Slovakia; Chava Rose-Bornstein, a nurse in the Dutch underground;  Sig Menko, Gerard Sanders and Isidoor van Dam, heads of the Jewish Community in Enschede, Holland; Fabius Ornstein, head of the Judenrat in Kopaygorod, Ukraine; Oswald Rufeisen and Dov Reznick members of the Mir Ghetto underground; Mala Zimetbaum, an inmate at Auschwitz; Miriam and Menachem Pinkhof, heads of Chalutz group in Holland; Karl Demerer, camp elder at Blechhammer concentration camp; Ronia Rozental from the Kovno Ghetto; Polia and Moshe Musel from the Kovno Ghetto and Ricardo Cavaligon who assisted Jewish refugees in northern Italy.
 
The citation is conferred in honor of the devotion, courage and heroism exhibited by these individuals under inhumane conditions in order to save their brethren. All the citations except to Polia Musel and Fanny Ben-Ami will be presented posthumously to relatives of the rescuers.
 
The Jewish Rescuers Citation was established in 2011 by the B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem and JRJ to rectify the historical record regarding Jewish rescue. The phenomena of Jewish rescue and the instructive stories of thousands of Jews who labored to save their endangered brethren throughout Europe have yet to receive appropriate public recognition and resonance. Many who could have tried to flee chose to stay and rescue others; some paid for it with their lives. With great heroism, Jews in every country in occupied Europe employed subterfuge, forgery, smuggling, concealment and other methods to ensure that Jews survived the Holocaust, or assisted them in escaping to a safe place, and in doing so foiled the Nazi goal of total genocide against the Jews. To date more than 200 heroes have been honored with the citation for rescue activities in Germany, France, Hungary, Greece, Slovakia, Yugoslavia, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Italy and Holland.
 
Some of the citations will be presented at a joint B'nai B'rith World Center-Jerusalem/ Keren Kayemet Le' Israel — JNF Holocaust and Martyr's Day ceremony commemorating Jewish rescuers during the Holocaust, to be held April 12 at the B'nai B'rith Martyr's Forest, "Scroll of Fire" plaza. The ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. with the siren peal. Fanny Ben-Ami’s story is memorialized in the book “The Little Commander” by Galila Ron-Feder (Hebrew, 1986) and in the film “Fanny’s Journey” (2016).” Ben-Ami will address the ceremony on behalf of the Jewish rescuers.
 
For more information contact Alan Schneider, director, B'nai B'rith World Center-Jerusalem, 972-2-6251743, 972-52-5536441 or aschneider@bnaibrith.org.

​B’nai B’rith International President Gary P. Saltzman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:
 
U.S. Rep. Gene Green (D-Texas) toured one of B’nai B’rith International’s housing facilities to meet with residents and discuss the critical importance of housing for adults with limited means. Pasadena Interfaith Manor in Pasadena, Texas is a residential facility sponsored by B’nai B’rith in partnership with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
 
“I'm delighted to have had the opportunity to visit a facility like the Pasadena Interfaith Manor that provides crucial services and a supply of affordable, comfortable housing to the 29th District. I commend B'nai Brith’s diligent work in advancing Section 202 housing, a vital program for many low-income seniors in the 29th District of Texas, and I share their goal of doing all we can to protect federal funding for Section 202,” Green said.
 
Green’s tour of the building included a resident’s apartment, the library, resident computer room, community room, resident grocery store and the building’s grounds which include a dog park.
 
After the tour the Congressman spoke with residents on a variety of senior issues such as affordable housing, Social Security, health care, nutrition and Supplemental Security Income. Residents were able to explain to their elected representative how important these federal programs are in their life.
 
This type of housing is in constant demand, and researchers say for every low-income senior housing apartment nationwide there are 10-12 seniors waiting for a spot.
 
Before the tour began Green met with B’nai B’rith International Senior Housing Program Chair Seth Riklin, Pasadena Interfaith Manor Board Member Mort Peltzman, Regional Property Manager for BHC Property Management Phyllis Davis and On-site Manager Mike Garcia.
 
The B'nai B'rith Senior Housing Network in the United States consists of 38 buildings in 27 communities, includes some 4,500 apartment units and serves more than 8,000 people.

B’nai B’rith International President Gary P. Saltzman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:  
 
We support and commend the participants in today’s March For Our Lives events around the nation and the world. The more than 800 rallies, launched and led by students, are an encouraging reminder of the power of a united voice.
 
B’nai B’rith has long called for comprehensive gun reform measures including appropriate waiting periods, volume sales restrictions and background checks for all firearm sales, together with criminal and mental health reviews. It is imperative that we as a nation unite to restore the safety of our schools and public spaces. Meaningful legislation is desperately needed to limit access to the most dangerous weapons and high capacity ammunition magazines whose sole purpose is to maximize death counts. Today’s spirited marches and rallies are a bold call to action as participants declared “Enough is Enough!”
 
The enthusiasm and passion for change we witnessed today encourages us to renew our efforts on the issue of gun control reform. We will work in broad-based coalitions with public officials and leaders of both political parties to promote bipartisan solutions. 

B’nai B’rith International President Gary P. Saltzman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:

B’nai B’rith International strongly deplores the five unjust anti-Israel resolutions the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) passed today. One resolution, which seeks to call in to question the legitimacy of sales of military equipment to Israel, provides new evidence that the Council is entirely indifferent to the rights and well-being of those on one side of the conflict — the citizens of the State of Israel defending their right to life, the most basic human right of all. This resolution passed with 27 votes in favor, four against and 15 countries abstaining. We condemn Belgium and Slovenia as the only European Union members of the Council choosing to vote in favor of this outrageous resolution.

We commend the United States and Australia for taking a principled stand by voting against all five resolutions.

Today’s vote again shows that the Council has run amok. Only the Security Council can level binding sanctions or an arms embargo, yet when it comes to Israel, the UNHRC has felt empowered over the last few years to create a blacklist of Israeli and multinational companies operating in Palestinian-claimed territory and now threatens states and companies that sell arms that Israel uses to defend itself against hostile regimes and terrorist groups. The Council is clearly in urgent need of reform.

B’nai B’rith International last week wrapped up its annual mission to the Human Rights Council, where we held high-level meetings with numerous countries and made an intervention at the Council. 

See the full statement here.